Musclemen look to elevate

Chris Yemma

With their chiseled bodies and bulging biceps, the Newport Harbor

High boys track and field team is getting back to the sport’s Greek

roots.

And as the Greek character Atlas carried the world on his

shoulders, the musclemen of the Sailors will carry the bulk load of

the burden this season.

The Sailors are stacked deep in the throwing events with big guys

that have the capability to scoop up mass points in the shot put and

discus. Two of the throwers, and the throwing coach, are coming off a

CIF Southern Section Division VI championship-game loss in football,

and are looking for redemption.

“We have probably two guys that are Masters Meet caliber,” said

third-year coach Nowell Kay. “All of [the shot put and discus

athletes] have this work ethic. They have been lifting and working

their tails off in practice.”

Led by junior Bo Taylor, the star-studded shot and discus athletes

include seniors Trevor Theriot and Kurt Kalanz, as well as sophomore

Kevin Williams.

And with a throwing coach in the mix -- Tony Ciarelli, the

defensive coordinator for the Newport football team -- the big men

will be learning to channel their raw strength.

Taylor, who hit a personal record in the discus by 25 feet (170-2

1/2 ) in his first meet this year (the Eagle invite March 5), is

benefiting from the coaching, Kay said.

“Discus is a little more technical than shot put,” Kay said. “We

didn’t have a coach in those events last year, so now, he’s getting

great help.”

Taylor clinched third in the Sea View League last year in discus,

throwing 145-3. He was second in shot put with a 50-foot throw and

has bettered his shot put by two feet already this year.

Theriot was second in the shot put (48-10) at the Eagle Invite,

consisting of eight schools from the Southland.

Also returning and looking to do some damage is junior sprinter

Keith Eldridge, who won league in the 200 meters in 22.93 seconds.

Eldridge will also be running the 100, while anchoring the 400 and

1,600 relay teams.

The distance runners are led by senior Nick St. Andre, who

finished third in league in the 1,600 (4:36.52) in 2004.

The Sailors finished fourth in league, while Aliso Niguel clinched

first. But Kay said he is looking for his team to have a higher

finish this year.

“We should be around the middle of the pack or higher,” Kay said.

“It’s all about the matchups, and we matchup well against a lot of

teams.”